


Muffled

by Shoggy



Category: Re-Animator (Movies)
Genre: Dan's the vamp, Hypnotism, M/M, Vampire AU, auditory issues, autistic Herbert hours who's up
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-22
Updated: 2019-02-22
Packaged: 2019-11-04 00:56:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17888480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shoggy/pseuds/Shoggy
Summary: Sometimes Herbert needs a little extra convincing to take a break.





	1. Chapter 1

               Herbert West didn’t like noise even at the _best_ of times.

               It was an unfortunate necessity of being an able-bodied person, and it served its purpose, but it certainly didn’t stop his thoughts from being snagged by distractions the world saw fit to send his way. Generally it wasn’t _too_ overbearing, as he took special care to limit as many audible distractions as possible. Being in a basement certainly helped-other than the rumble of an occasional car passing by, everything could be kept distant.

               However, the moment weariness decided to rear its ugly head, everything became too much.

               He gritted his teeth, hunched over his notes while the refrigerator kept at its monotone drone. It seemed to be growing steadily louder, even though he knew it wasn’t. Its traitorous buzz had been joined by the whir of the heater, grating at his already short nerves.

               He eyed the fridge, knowing that it could be quieted with another dose of reagent. The temptation was worse than he’d care to admit. It was such an easy fix-one quick injection and he could be promised another day’s worth of energy. Another day free of all the buzzing, all the humming, the constant background throb that kept him from his work-

               He tore his eyes away from the refrigerator door with difficulty. He’d promised Dan he wouldn’t touch it. He rubbed unconsciously at the red lines of itchy, healing skin on his neck. “No more reagent Herbert,” he muttered in a high, mocking tone. “Get out of the basement Herbert.”

               _Bastard._

The downfall of being a willing food source for the local vampire was Dan’s ability to taste even the faintest traces of the serum in his bloodstream. It wasn’t healthy, Dan said. A hazard to both of them.

               Well, what the hell did he know?

               He glared at the slides before him, all neatly prepared with his roommate’s blood. Well, technically his blood. It’d come out of him, at any rate, though most of it used to belong to Herbert. It all depended on technicalities, but in the end it boiled down to one simple fact: Dan needed to feed, and if he didn’t, Herbert would have no samples. No samples meant losing a _very_ promising lead.

               He could wait for Dan to find something else to slake his thirst on, but the vampire’s feeding habits were scattered and unreliable. It was far more convenient to offer himself and take it from there.

               (Nevermind the more…personal satisfaction of the act. It didn’t matter that they were…well, for lack of a better word, lovers. It was convenience he needed to focus on, not the feeling of Dan’s teeth in his neck or his hands gripping his waist, iron-tight-)

               He growled and snapped his notebook shut. The buzzing had increased another decimal. He _could_ go upstairs and brew another pot of coffee, but the thought of exposing himself to _even more_ sounds-the traffic outside, the fan running overhead, the pot fizzling away-it felt like his skin was peeling off just _considering_ the option.

               He flipped the notebook back open and scrawled a reminder to buy a coffee pot for the basement too. Preferably without Dan knowing.

               “The last thing you need is _more_ caffeine.”

               Herbert yelped and almost fell off of the stool he was perched on. He tensed, quickly rearranging the pencil in his hand, ready to lash out. It wasn’t much, but it’d be a decent distraction if used forcefully enough-

               Dan backed away, hands raised. “Whoa, easy!”

               Herbert stared at him for a moment, eyes reflexively darting towards the unblocked staircase, before he dropped the pencil. He closed his eyes and breathed slowly out through his nose.

               “I thought we agreed that’d you _warn_ me before coming down here.”

               Dan had the decency to look sheepish. “Sorry. I thought you heard me.”

               “I’d appreciate it if you took our agreements more seriously.”

               Dan snorted. “Like you’re one to talk.”

               “What do you mean?”

               “ _You_ said you were going to take a break before I left. You’ve been down here all day.”

               “I did.” Herbert sniffed.

               “Coffee breaks don’t count and you know it.”

               Herbert rolled his eyes. “Are you going to make yourself useful, or are you here to lecture me?”

               “Both.”

               _Wonderful._

“You can start by refilling this.” He nudged the long-empty mug towards Dan.

               Dan crossed his arms and frowned. “How many cups have you had today? Five?”

               “Three.” He snapped sourly.

               “Well, it’s an improvement.”

               Herbert threw his arms into the air. “Finally, your approval! Just what I’ve always wanted!”

               “...Y’know, you really don’t have to be such a dick.”

               Ugh, his _voice._ One more irritant on heaps of annoyances. Herbert growled and shoved the mug into Dan’s chest. “Either get me a refill or get out. I’m busy.”

               He turned back to the slides and grabbed for the nearest one. He could hear Dan sigh behind him and bristled. “I don’t need your- “

               His sentence died abruptly in his throat as Dan grabbed his reaching hand and pulled Herbert to his feet. Dan’s touch was cold-not unpleasant, generally-but to his overtaxed nerves it might as well be ice. “What are you doing?” he squeaked, wincing at the break in his voice.

               With the hand not currently pinning Herbert to his chest, Dan tilted Herbert’s chin upwards. Herbert’s breath hitched in his throat as Dan frowned at the dark shadows under his eyes. “Why don’t you go upstairs, and I’ll finish the notes? You look like you haven’t slept in a week.”

               “Thirty-seven hours, to be accurate.” Herbert corrected, trying to maintain some semblance of composure. With his neck exposed, his heart beat rapidly. The more shameless part of him eagerly waited for the aching pinch of Dan’s fangs digging into his flesh. The more sensible, instinctual part of him demanded that he hold his ground, vaguely aware that despite friendly appearances, this was still a _predator_ holding him.

               Judging by the grin on Dan’s face, his attempt at composure had fallen flat. “You’re blushing again.”

               “Well it’s hardly my-“

               He blinked. What…what was he going to say again?

               There was an odd new gleam in Dan’s eyes. They were usually fairly luminous-attractively so (like most of him, a lovely trap for the potential stranger who got a little too caught up in his presence)-but now they were…somehow brighter. Glowing, almost. It was distracting, like most things currently were, but… _different_. Less…abrasive.

               “Something wrong?”

               Herbert blinked. “N-no, I’m…”

               Once again, he lost his train of thought. His eyes were so _bright_. Was it the angle? Some trick of the light? He tried to look way, but he…he couldn’t quite bring himself to do so. They really were lovely. So bright, so comfortingly familiar…

               “Herbert?”

               “Mhm?”

               “Man, you’re in worse shape than I thought. Maybe you should take a quick nap.”

               That…that actually wasn’t a bad idea, now that he thought about it. All the noises around him that made it so hard to focus seemed to fade the more he considered it. The winter thawed out of Dan’s touch, now pleasantly cool, like stepping into the shade on a sweltering summer’s day. The hand holding his chin moved to his back, tracing comforting circles into the skin. Herbert’s head didn’t move, still caught by Dan’s eyes. He didn’t notice that he’d stopped blinking, or that Dan was now the only thing holding him upright-all that mattered now was the sleepy comfort slowly spreading through him, weighing down his limbs. He needed to rest, needed to take better care of himself. _Surely,_ he trusted Dan to take care of the work while he slept. He was his partner, after all. He knew what was expected of him. Notes were a simple task, nothing that needed Herbert’s attention.

               His eyelids fluttered heavily as Dan gently coaxed him to rest his head on his shoulder. Herbert complied, suddenly unable to hold his head up on his own. He could feel Dan nip at his neck and hummed appreciatively at the jolt of pleasure it gave him.

               “That’s it, baby.” Dan murmured. “Just let go.”

               Herbert’s eyes finally drooped shut, unable to stay open anymore. He felt himself being lifted and sighed, curling against Dan’s chest.

               It was quiet, save for the abnormally slow beat of Dan’s heart. _Finally_ quiet. The background buzz that had irked him so a few moments ago had faded away. There was nothing now but the steady pulse of blood-his blood, Dan’s blood, one and the same really. Both sustained by the same cells, the same plasma-connected on a deeper level, one that continued in spite of it all.

               It was a pleasant thought.


	2. Chapter 2

               He was warm.

               For a moment, that was enough. It was comfortable, and there was someone’s hand carding through his hair-Dan’s. He wasn’t sure how he knew, but he did, and that was good enough.

               Then instinct was replaced by reason, and he blearily forced one eye open. His glasses had been removed, but he was clearly in his bedroom. He sat up with a groan, rubbing his head. Why did it still feel heavy?

               Dan handed him his glasses. “About time you woke up. I was about to check your pulse.”

               “What happened?”

               “You fell asleep.”

               Well, that wasn’t too alarming-the moment he started weaning himself off of the reagent, there’d be times during the week where his body decided to betray him. But this…was different. He was in the basement before, wasn’t he? Yes, and then Dan came home, and…

               He glared at him suspiciously. “What did you do to me?”

               Dan sighed and set the book he was reading to the side. “I made sure you slept, since you apparently can’t care for yourself on your own.”

               “What did you _do_?” he repeated impatiently.

               “It’s…” Dan sighed. “I’m assuming you know what hypnotism is, right?”

               Herbert arched an eyebrow. “Yes? Are you suggesting that you have some sort of natural mesmeric capability?”

               “I’m not _suggesting_ it. I _have_ it. It’s like our venom,” he said, gesturing vaguely towards his mouth, “it’s supposed to keep people from running off. Obviously, we can use it for other things, but it’s more of a last resort.”

               Whatever lingering heaviness in Herbert’s head left abruptly. He’d heard the old wives’ tales of snakes freezing their prey with their gaze, but that was obvious nonsense. The idea of a predator with a genuine hypnotic influence-it was clearly centered in the eyes. His recollection of last night was still fuzzy at best, but the unnatural glow-that must have been it. He cursed his limited understanding of optometry. There had to be some sort of mutation-something with the lens, perhaps. Something to manipulate reflectivity.

               “I’m assuming you can control it…”

               Dan shrugged. “For the most part. Sometimes it starts up on its own, but that’s because I’ve been recently turned. You get the hang of it eventually.”

               Herbert’s eyes flickered to the notebook on the nightstand. “How do you know it’s active? Are there any physical sensations involved? Changes in vision?”

               Dan laughed and handed him the book and a pen. Herbert opened it immediately and waited expectantly. “It’s mostly a hot feeling around the socket-almost like blushing, but not quite.” Dan explained.

               “Increase of blood flow to the area…” Herbert muttered. “Nothing else?”

               “Not particularly. I haven’t really paid attention before.”

               Herbert looked up sharply. “You have the ability to influence others on a subconscious level and you haven’t _used_ it?”

               “People really don’t appreciate being manipulated, Herbert.”

               “How often have you tried it?”

               “About four times. Again, I don’t like using it, and it’s not like I have someone to practice it on.”

               Herbert made note of that and sighed. “Well, for the sake of scientific curiosity…” He looked up at Dan expectantly.

               “Are you sure?” Dan asked.

               “Yes.” Herbert set the book down. “And pay attention this time. There has to be _something_ other than heat.”

               Dan frowned, clearly trying to think of some other excuse, before his eyes started to glow again. Now that Herbert was _aware_ that something was happening, he could sense the creeping fuzziness in the back of his mind instantly. All background sounds started to fade as he struggled to blink.

               Dan looked away abruptly. “The hot feeling started. That’s been about…twenty seconds, on my count.”

               “Y-yes.” Herbert mumbled, shaking his head in an attempt to clear it. “Anything…else?”

               “They’re vibrating a little.”

               “Vibrating?”

               “Feels like it, at least.” Dan rubbed the skin just under his eyes. “Yeah, definitely vibrating.”

               “Visual effects?”

               “None.”

               “They’re vibrating but everything still looks the same?”

               “I never said any of this stuff made sense.”

               Herbert rolled his eyes but took note of it anyway. If Dan’s _friend_ ever stopped by to visit again, he’d have to inquire further. Miss Halsey wasn’t the most approachable of people…but then again, that could be entirely Herbert’s fault. He’d made it abundantly clear that she wasn’t welcomed, but that was _before_ he learned about her condition. He begrudgingly regretted his behavior. It would’ve been so _useful_ to have another subject-someone he could easily compare Dan’s accounts to.

               Oh well. At least she wasn’t around to distract Dan.

               “You mentioned needing to practice…”

               Dan raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t think you’d agree to it.”

               “In controlled settings…” he sighed. “I’ll allow it. Provided that you warn me, of course.”

               Dan’s disbelief quickly turned into a smirk. “Oh? And what sort of settings were you thinking of?”

               Sometimes, Herbert truly hated the man and his knack for invoking embarrassing behavior. “Not like _that_.” He huffed, feeling his face grow hot at the suggestion. “Just as a test.”

               Dan leaned forward, still smirking. “Tell you what,” he said coolly, “if you actually take a break when I ask you to, I’ll practice with you.”

               “Fi-“

               “And keep feeding on you.”

               “You can’t just _add_ conditions!”

               Dan shrugged and turned away. “I mean, they’re _my_ fangs. I get to choose who I bite. If I decide drinking from you is a health hazard, then it’s a health hazard. Just keeping your best interests in mind.”

               “ _Fine_.” Herbert spat.

               “That’s what I thought.” He slowly turned back to him. “Speaking of feeding…”

               Herbert swallowed and looked away. “Do you need to…?”

               “I mean, if you’re willing…”

               Herbert pulled his collar down. “Fine. Just a little.” He gasped as Dan pulled him back and nuzzled his face into the crook of his neck.

               “Consider it an apology for knocking you out.”

               Any reply Herbert could’ve made was promptly forgotten as Dan’s fangs sunk into his skin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was seven pages.  
> I hope y'all appreciate what I do for you.


End file.
